Uma abordagem semântica a moçambicanismos

Abstract

This study is a semantic approach to new words in Mozambican Portuguese (PM). It is intended to carry out a descriptive study from a corpus consisting of data produced by speakers in different situations and data collected in information agencies. The study consists of verifying whether the new words in PM maintain or alter their semantic fields in relation to the source languages ​​(European Portuguese and Tsonga language). It appears that the change takes place at two levels: on the one hand, through the enlargement of meanings (extension) and, on the other, through the restriction of meanings (restriction). From the analysis carried out, the following conclusions were reached: The new words in the PM, which are the object of this investigation, come mainly from the Bantu languages ​​of Mozambique (LBs) and European Portuguese (EP) as well as from a quantitatively non-significant group of unspecified foreign languages. The words that come from, PE, in general, increase the extension, those that come from the Bantu languages, for the most part, keep their semantic field.